Keeping a virtual eye on Fido

Several technologies allow pet owners to check in on their pets while they are away.

Photo By Robin Jerstad/For the Express-News

Tina Dal Santo keeps an eye on her dog, Nala, during the workday via webcams at Camp Bow Wow that she can access on her iPad.

Photo By screen grab

A screengrab of a webcam from a Camp Bow Wow in San Antonio. The dog daycare and boarding facility has webcams so pet owners can look in on their pets.

Photo By JOHN DAVENPORT/San Antonio Express-News

Camp Bow Wow employee Sadie Armstrong spends time Wednesday January 23, 2013 with Nala the golden retriever/border collie mix. Nala's owner, Tina Dal Santo, can check on her dog while she's at work with the help of her computer and Camp Bow Wow's webcams.

They call Nala “the princess” at Camp Bow Wow and it's easy to see why. The golden retriever/border collie mix often holds court over a play area at the doggie day care and boarding facility. She also greets canine playmates with a royal kiss.

Tina Dal Santo has a unique perspective on the matter — usually via a computer or her iPad. She drops off Nala at Camp Bow Wow's northwest location every weekday, then occasionally peeks in on her regal pooch via the camp's webcam.

“I know it might sound corny to people who don't have pets in their life,” says Dal Santo, who works in member experience risk management at USAA, “but ... it just makes me happy. It's fun to watch.”

From pet cameras to GPS collars, there are myriad ways to monitor our furry, feathered or otherwise textured friends when they aren't underfoot or on our laps. Such technology provides an amusing window to the secret, mostly sedentary lives of pets. It can also help deal with clawing of the drapes and other displays of separation anxiety.

Rosa Espinosa, a licensed psychologist in San Antonio, says such technology is used mostly in a healthy way. She says while those who aren't animal lovers don't understand such pet monitoring, it hardly makes these avenues unhealthy for pet lovers.

But bad habits could show up on the other side of the screen, too. Get too obsessed with that animal surveillance and you could stray into helicopter (pet) parenting territory.

“I would say if somebody cannot function or finds it very hard to not be checking on their pet all of the time then that is an unhealthy area,” Espinosa says.

No worries there for Dal Santo. She's quick to point out she isn't “webcam crazy.” As plugged-in as she is to Nala's life, she doesn't use her home security system to spy on Nala slouched on the couch. And she doesn't click over and over to the Camp Bow Wow website to see what dogs Nala greets before lunch.

“Use it to check in on your pet and make you feel good,” advises Dal Santo. “And then turn it off.”

That said, webcams and similar devices can give pet owners an extra level of security — emotional or otherwise.

“Pet parents are usually hesitant about leaving their dogs somewhere,” says Tamara Wetegrove, who owns the two local Camp Bow Wows. “(This is) giving them peace of mind that they can check on their dogs periodically throughout the day.”

Here are some of those ways to keep an eye on your pet with tech.

Webcams and apps

Dal Santo sought webcam service as much to monitor Nala's treatment as to gaze into her canine eyes from afar. But such viewing is also available for watching your pets while they're at home.

The Dropcam HD webcam ($149) beams footage of your pet to your computer as well as to the Dropcam app on your smartphone and tablet. VueZone ($199.99 for single-camera system) also provides computer viewing, though the accompanying app requires a subscription to a Premier ($4.99/month) or Elite service plan ($99.99/year).

Rather make your own monitoring system? Try the iCam app ($4.99) with a low-cost USB webcam ($10 and up) or a higher-end network Internet protocol camera ($45 and up).

These services can also send alerts when a pet trips a motion sensor — perfect for cat owners who want to ensure their felines stay off the kitchen counter. Dropcam HD even lets you bark out a “Down, Fluffy!” or other audio warning through the camera.

GPS

We use GPS to map routes for road trips, so why not use it to help track a lost pet? PocketFinder ($149.95 with a $12.95 monthly service, no contract) and the Garmin GTU 10 ($199.99 with one year of standard GPS tracking) provide waterproof devices that attach to your pet's collar so you can track them via the Web or smartphone app.

They also let you create “geofence” zones or virtual boundaries for your pet. If Fido or Fifi roams in or out of those areas, you get an email or text alert.

Microchip implant

Microchip implants give your pet permanent identification no matter what collars and tags come and go. Animal Care Services chips pets for as low as $15. The onetime injection is very similar to a vaccination and takes just a few minutes.

ACS public information officer Lisa Norwood notes animal shelters use universal scanners that can detect chips from various manufacturers and ACS officers also carry chip scanners in the field.

Lost animal alerts

The Web serves as a global telephone poll that holds virtual fliers for lost or found pets. Start local with Animal Care Services (sanantonio.gov/animalcare and 210-207-4738). You can also try to reunite with area pets at SApets.com.

National resources for lost and found pets include Lost Pet Atlas (lostpetatlas.com) and TheCenterForLostPets.com. PetAmberAlert.com offers paid options starting at $29.95 to get the word out about your lost pet. For more resources, visit Lost & Found under Useful Links at SAPaws.com.